HIT SKETCH COMEDY SHOW STARRING JEFF FOXWORTHY, BILL ENGVALL AND LARRY THE CABLE GUY SET TO GO BACK INTO PRODUCTION

PICK-UPS OF "BLUE COLLAR TV" AND "SUMMERLAND" GIVE THE WB A GREAT START TO THE 2004-2005 SEASON

Based on BLUE COLLAR TV's hot start out of the box, The WB Network has ordered an additional 22 episodes of its new hit sketch comedy show starring Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry The Cable Guy, it was announced today by David Janollari, the network's President, Entertainment.

"The most elusive thing in television these days is a hit comedy and in 'Blue Collar TV' we have one, which made the pick-up an easy decision," Mr. Janollari said. "It is a testament to the abilities and distinctive voices of Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry The Cable Guy, as well as executive producers Fax Bahr and Adam Small that we have ordered an entire season of this series in addition to the eight episodes from its summer run. The success of 'Blue Collar TV,' along with 'Summerland,' gives The WB a great start on the new season with two hits already in the bag."

The show, which also features a talented ensemble cast, has been a hit since its first airing on July 29 and is the most-watched series ever to air Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. for The WB.

In its debut, the show attracted 5.4 million viewers, making it the second-most-watched show ever in its time period for The WB and the network's third-highest comedy debut ever. The show, which scored the best ratings for The WB in its time period in many key demos since the 2001 premiere of Charmed, was also #2 in its time period in adults 18-34 (2.3/9), persons 12-34 (2.3/9), women 18-34 (2.8/10), women 12-34 (2.6/10), men 12-34 (2.1/9) and adults 18-49 (2.1/8).

The results held up in its second and third episodes. In its second episode, BLUE COLLAR TV retained an outstanding 91% of its adults 18-34 rating (2.1/8), 89% of its women 18-34 (2.5/9), 94% of its men 18-34 (1.7/7), 83% of its persons 12-34 (1.9/8), 92% of its women 12-34 (2.4/9), 100% of its adults 18-49 (2.1/7), 92% of its women 18-49 (2.3/8), 100%of its men 18-49 (1.8/7) and built its female teen audience (2.2/9, 110%). BLUE COLLAR TV, which has also had great success with encore episodes on Fridays and on Comedy Central, also retained 86% of its total viewers (4.6 million). In its third airing, BLUE COLLAR TV had week-to-week gains in several key demos including persons 12-34, teens and total viewers.

Along with drama hit SUMMERLAND, The WB has netted two long-term assets from its 2004 summer season. SUMMERLAND and BLUE COLLAR TV are the only two scripted hits to debut on any network this summer.

"For the first summer in The WB's history, we programmed high-profile shows with an eye for the future," Mr. Janollari said. "Scoring both a comedy and a drama hit has given us a great deal of flexibility and depth for the upcoming season."